Angelina Jolie urges Europe to prioritise refugees over economic migrants
- Details
- Published on Tuesday, 08 September 2015 04:49
- Written by Independent
Angelina Jolie and Baroness Arminka Helic have called for refugees fleeing war and persecution to be prioritised over economic migrants as Europe faces the biggest refugee crisis to hit its shores since the Second World War.Jolie, an actress and activist, is special envoy of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Helic is a member of the House of Lords and a former refugee, having escaped the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina in the 1990s. She also served as the special advisor to the former Foreign Secretary, William Hague.In a jointly written comment piece for The Times, Jolie and Helic urged governments to recognise the humanitarian responsibility they have with the thousands of displaced men, women and children fleeing countries ravaged by war for Europe. A Chnage.org petition launched by The Independent calling on the British Government to accept its fair share of refugees has been signed over 360,000 times. The petition was launched after the devastating picture of Syrian toddler Alyan Kurdi washed up on a Turkish beach emerged, shocking thousands into action.Ten thousand refugees reached Munich on Sunday and were greeted with welcome signs, food, water and toys upon their arrival.
Helic and Jolie said it was important to remember the distinction between economic migrants trying to escape lives of extreme poverty, and refugees who are fleeing an immediate threat to their lives in this time of emergency.They wrote: “All people on the move in these tragic circumstances must have their human rights and dignity respected and their needs understood and addressed. We should not stigmatise anyone for the aspiration to a better life. “But refugees are facing an immediate need to be saved from persecution and death and their rights are defined in international law. That is why effective reception and screening are so important, to enable claims to be analysed and protection extended to those who need it.”Jolie and Helic called for leaders to use their heads as well as their hearts in order to create a forward thinking, long-lasting plan to tackle the global crisis. They stressed that the refugee crisis must be tackled at the source of the problem, warning that Europe cannot simply “donate our way out of the crisis”. “We cannot solve it simply by taking in refugees, we have to find a diplomatic route to end the conflict," they wrote.
The pair said their plight reflects the wider issues with global governance, with over 60 million people being displaced by international crisis over the past decade. “It is unsustainable and beyond what international humanitarian organisations can manage. It is driven by a systemic failure to resolve conflicts. Nothing tells us more about the state of the world than the movement of people across borders. It is time to look for long-term solutions and to recognise that governments, not refugees, have to provide the answer.”Jolie joins Pope Francis, Bob Geldof and many other prominent figures making impassioned pleas to leaders to support refugees after they arrive in Europe.
 |
Copycait! Caitlyn Jenner reveals her style is inspired by Angelina Jolie... but admits she is insecure about wearing heels in I Am Cait
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, 23 September 2015 10:39
- Written by Daily mail
There are worse people to base your style on than the word's most beautiful woman.Catlyn Jenner has revealed Angelina Jolie is one of her style idols.On the latest clip from I Am Cait, the 65-year-old enlists the help of Jen Rade to get ready for her Espy award back in July, primarily because she is the stylist behind the actress.'I just love her look,' she says of the Oscar-winner. 'Very casual, very elegant, chic.'In the preview, Jen greets Caitlyn at her door, and instantly compliments her with: 'My gosh, could you be more tall and gorgeous?' - oblivious to the fact she has just hit on one of the reality star's biggest insecurities; her height.As the two woman make their way to the bedroom, Rade is stunned to discover the former Olympian has got an impressive wardrobe.'Oh my gosh, this is a great closet! every one of these is so pretty,' she exclaims. 'I was thinking I wanted to go shopping for you, but this is beautiful!'As she picks through Caitlyn's closet, she claims to get a sense of 'easy classics... little bit of a hippie in you'.'Little bit, yeah,' Caitlyn replies. 'Product of the sixties and seventies. I've been there.'When she describes her own style as liking to blend in', Rade quips 'I think it's a little late for that... We've leaped over that hurdle already.' In July, Caitlyn was awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the sports ceremony.She admits to Rade one of her wardrobe insecurities is looking too tall in heels. 'The big issue I have with shoes is:' she says, gesturing to the four inches beneath a red pair of red shoes/ 'Okay? That makes me about 6' 9".While Rade is more concerned with Caitlyn negotiating the tricky walk to the stage, she need not have worried.'What is your level of skill walking in heels?' she asks her.'I'm a professional,' Caitlyn shots back with a wink and a wry smile. 'I've been doing it a long time, girl.' On an upcoming interview with Ellen DeGeneres, the father of six claimed there is no part of her previous life that she wishes she could have back.'Absolutely, no. Because as a woman I can do all this fun stuff anyway. I can still play golf. I can still go race cars. There’s nothing better than to wake up in the morning and be able to be your authentic self."'The things I’ve learned over the last few months [have] just been overwhelming,' she said. 'My experience is very different than anyone else’s.'
 |
Maleficent Meets the Wicked Witch! Angelina Jolie Pitt Takes Her Kids to See Wicked on London's West End
- Details
- Published on Sunday, 06 September 2015 19:43
- Written by People
Angelina Jolie Pitt took her children on a cultural excursion to London's West End theater district on Saturday for a performance of beloved fantasy musical Wicked.Spotted exiting the Apollo Theatre after "one short day in the Emerald City," the Maleficent actress had at least four of her six children in tow – Zahara, 10, Shiloh, 8, and twins, Knox and Vivienne, both 7.One fellow theatergoer tweeted that the actress's husband, Pitt, was also in attendance. However, he was not spotted leaving the theater with the rest of the group."Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt with their kids 6 rows in front of us at the theatre seeing Wicked!" the user wrote.
 |
'It felt pretty good' : Angelina Jolie cries and rages in newly unearthed footage from an acting class when she was just 25
- Details
- Published on Saturday, 05 September 2015 10:09
- Written by Daily mail
In today's world of instant celebrity young wannabes can find fame by posting a few YouTube videos.But just two decades ago it still took years of hard work to make it into the public eye.And Angelina Jolie was no different, as a newly unearthed video reveals.Showing the actress in an acting class at the age of 25, she works with two other budding actors as she performs a scene.Working through a series of intense emotions the young actress shows her huge range.'I need to hurt you. I want to hurt you,' she states, with an evil smile playing on her lips, as tears begin to fall.With her naturally bee-stung lips, ruffled hair and make-up free skin, Angelina is an unpolished youthful version of the star we know today.While her acting seems somewhat rough around the edges at times, the talent that would make her a star is obviously there. But when the scene ends it is clear she has yet to develop the poise and ease in the spotlight that would help her become one of the world's biggest stars.Suddenly shy, she mutters her responses to her coach's questions and looks uncomfortable accepting praise.The coach tells Angelina: 'I thought your eyes were wonderful. I especially liked the movement in the scene for you. Something was really connected.'I felt for you a real sense of style. You didn't allow it to just keep going there, you changed it lots of times. You found the humour and you found that and you took the scene in different directions.'As her fellow actors wordily express their satisfaction with the rehearsal, Angelina brushes off the attention.'It felt pretty good, different and funny. It was interesting,' she eventually mumbles.
Slumped in her chair, her long limbs cast out in front of her, Angelina looks as if she is yet to fully feel at ease in her body.As the daughter of two actors, Angelina made her screen debut as a child in 1982's Lookin' To Get Out alongside her father Jon Voight.She then began studying acting while in her early teens but found it hard to pass auditions, often being told she was 'too dark'.After two years at the Lee Strasberg Theater Institute Angelina dropped out to study embalming, planning to become a funeral director.She went back to acting after a period away, but found her first paid work as a model, appearing in a series of music videos, before landing a role in 1993's straight-to-video Cyborg 2. Six years later she won an Oscar for Girl, Interrupted, establishing herself as arguably the biggest star of her generation.At 40, mother-of-six Angelina is now a force for good, using her huge fame as an ambassador for the United Nations.
 |
Angelina Jolie 'quit Princess Diana mine-clearing charity in row over trustees paying themselves up to £500 a day'
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, 02 September 2015 18:00
- Written by Daily mail
Angelina Jolie has resigned from the landmine clearing charity made famous by Princess Diana in a row over trustees being paid as much as £500 a day, it has been reported.The actress is said to have felt 'extremely uncomfortable' after it emerged the two Halo Trust chiefs paid themselves more than £120,000 for a 'review'.The high profile charity, which clears landmines from war zones, was a favoured cause of the late Princess of Wales, and rose to prominence in 1997 when she visited a minefield it was clearing in Angola shortly before her death. Jolie quit her post as a trustee of the charity in May last year after 18 months on the board, citing other humanitarian aid commitments. She is well-known for her philanthropy and has worked as Special Envoy for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees since 2012.However, now it has been claimed she was unhappy after thousands of pounds was spent on a review of the organisation's 'structural, remuneration and governance arrangements'.Chairman of trustees Amanda Pullinger and another trustee, Simon Conway, were paid a total of £122,750 for the work, and according to The Times, Jolie had raised objections over this.She reportedly said that the cost of the review should have been met by the trustees themselves, and that charity funds should not have been used. She had also raised concerns over the Dumfries based charity's decision to contribute towards the school fees for the children of some staff.'She left because she was extremely uncomfortable with the actions of the trustees,' an insider told The Times. 'The main thing was the trustees paying themselves. What she said was, 'If these trustees want to do a review, pay for it yourselves'.'The review into the way the charity operation was carried out after former chief executive Guy Willoughby, who co-founded the organisation in 1988, resigned.He had been suspended in July last year after a 'serious deterioration in relations' between him and the board, and left the role the following month.
Prior to his resignation it had emerged that he had been receiving more than £70,000 to cover his children's school fees, a sum included in his pay package of between £210,000 and £220,000.The review covered the charity's human resources policies, financial planning and legal structures. Former hedge fund manager Ms Pullinger was paid £26,000, while author Mr Conway received £96,750 for his input into the review and for his role as an executive trustee while there was no chief executive. Both were able to claim costs on top of this.Photographs of Princess Diana's trip to Angola with the charity remain among the most enduring images of her, and her son Prince Harry served as patron of the Halo Trust's 25th anniversary appeal, visiting the African country himself to see the charity's mine clearing work there in 2013.His role as a patron came to an end in March. Other trustees of the charity include Cindy McCain, the wife of former US presidential candidate John McCain, ITV news anchor Tom Bradby and Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, who is private secretary to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry. In 2013, its income was more than £26million, and in 2014-15 it received £5.7million from the Department for International Development.James Cowan, the Halo Trust's current chief executive, said Jolie had taken part in a unanimous vote approving the review and had left the organisation so she could 'do other things'. A spokesman for the charity told MailOnline: 'The Halo Trust is a global organisation employing 6500 people carrying out life saving work across four continents. As a charity we are always mindful of the need to spend the money that we receive wisely and this is what governs the decisions of our Board.'Recent attention has focused on our governance and payments to trustees. After a period of substantial change last year, which included the stepping down of our long standing CEO, we conducted a governance review to strengthen our internal processes, to become even more efficient and effective, ensure that we continue to attract and retain the highest quality staff, and to allow us to build a solid foundation for future growth. Two of the trustees were tasked with carrying out this work and running the organisation. They received payment for this, which was entirely appropriate. The payments were agreed by the Board and signed off by the Charity Commission.'The charity is lucky enough to have the backing of a number of high profile individuals including Ms Angelina Jolie. Ms Jolie decided to stand down as a trustee of Halo in May of last year, she remains a supporter of The Halo Trust and our mission to rid the world of landmines.'Jolie has not commented on the claims.
|
Share
